"If he went to juvenile court the sentence he could have expected for a double murder would have been more than 40 years - probably less than 50," Page said.

"If he goes to an adult court, the typical sentence is 36 years per murder, so he could be facing 72 years in jail if he is convicted.

"Turkish people will actually complain that the justice system here is very slow.

"Big legal cases like this typically take two years, maybe even slightly more, so if the suspect is charged as we expect, we could be in for a lengthy trial process.

"It is similar to the UK system in that the defence and prosecution teams are appointed and witnesses are cross-examined, but one of the main major differences is that cases like this are tried before a judge only - not a jury."

The suspect who is also known as Alex had been working at a restaurant in the popular tourist resort of Kusadasi.

The suspect is alleged to have carried out the murders after he was refused permission to marry Shannon.

The two friends had been on vacation in Kusdasi and it is alleged Cetin took took the two women to a secluded wooded area where he murdered them.

Shannon had been on a boat trip when the killings occurred. Upon her return she couldn’t find her mother and alerted the local police.